News and Announcements
The Warriors will be competing this weekend at Lafayette High School. The team plans to leave from the O'Neal Wal-Mart parking lot at 6am. Weigh-in is at 7:30am and wrestling is scheduled to begin at 9:00am. I cannot give you a definite time of return as you have seen how tournaments go. I would guess that the wrestlers should return by 8pm. I hope that all goes well and the wrestlers have another successful weekend. Go Warriors.
Griffin Open offers good competition
Ben Willeford- Ben wrestled well again this weekend winning his second straight tournament and running his record to 8-0. Ben will face a more challenging group of wrestlers this Wednesday at the Spartan Open.
Tres' Gravois- Tres' continues to get Varsity match experience and will benefit from it at the end of the season. Tres' is giving us all his has and we appreciate his effort.
Landon Carr- Landon followed up last weekend finals performance with another good showing. He went 4-1 on his way to a 3rd place finish. He pinned in 3 of his 4 wins. This is very important to us in team scoring.
Brock Portier- Another tough freshman that continues to get Varsity mat time. This will only help him in the future. Keep it up brock.
Ryan Ballard- Ryan's day was cut short by a thumb injury. He has worked hard to help this team and will continue to do so. Get well so we can get you back on the mat.
Will Bellefontaine- With only one practice and coming off of illness after the State Cross Country Meet Will looked a little rusty. He had a slow start last season and we need a big season out of Will. He will get things going soon.
Mark Beuche- Mark notched another victory and continues to make little adjustments to improve his style. Never say die seems to be Mark's motto. He has wrestled some tough competition and always puts forth a good effort.
Jared Dietrich- Jared posted another win and in doing so eclipsed his record for all of last season. Keep rolling Jared.
Cameron Gibson- A tough draw and weekend for Cameron as he lost 2 straight. We need a good effort from Cameron at the Spartan Open.
Miles Greenblatt- After a few days of practice Miles comes out and goes 3-1 to win 3rd. Great job with limited knowledge.
Daniel Sommers- Another great showing from an incoming football player. All Daniel did was win 4 matches and make the third place match. He was unable to wrestle as the 5 match rule prevented him from doing so. He will be a force at 160.
Chase Dunlap- Another incoming football player with unlimited potential. Chase notched his first varsity win and wrestled well in 2 other matches.
Kyle Campbell- Kyle wrestled 4 matches and made it to the 3rd place match where he came up just a little short. Kyle will be at 215 next week and should make a big impact.
Lindsey Leavoy- A tweener heavyweight trying to decide if he drops to 215 Lindsey wrestled pretty well. He suffered a very minor injury and we pulled him just to be safe. Should be ready for the Spartan Open.
Gene Mills Camp a huge success for Warriors
The Warriors were privileged enough to spend 15 hours with "Mean" Gene Mills. This was an extraordinary opportunity for our young men. St. Paul's had expected 50 or so wrestlers to be at the camp. It turns out that only about 30 showed up. Not the showing we would have liked to have had, but it turned out in our favor. There was allot of individual attention given to our wrestlers by both Gene and Louie. If we had traveled there is no way we would have received this type of individual attention. It was fantastic. Gene was both informative and entertaining. For these guys to get this type of clinic was an unbelievable experience. We need to work hard to reinforce these skills and continue to grow. I would love to bring Gene to our house next year and show him a great time.
Our efforts at fundraising allowed us to bring these guys to this clinic. We need to focus our efforts towards this goal again this season. With the bingo and tournament money we should be able to do something similar next season.
Warrior wrestlers Zach Braud, Michael Podnar, Ben Willeford, Jared Dietrich, Cameron Gibson, and Marshall Leavoy participated in one of the freestyle tournaments. Even with very little practice these guys laced up there shoes and gave it a go. I am very proud that all of these guys showed what true "Warrior Spirit" is all about. Everyone gained valuable mat time. Jared and Cameron had tough pools including wrestlers that have participated in National Events. I am proud that these guys even came to the tournament. The summer season is all about experience and fun. I appreciate the work you guys are putting in. Cameron and Jared I want you to keep up the good fight.
Ben Willeford had an off weekend and did not place. This was a wake up call and the next weekend he avenged a couple of losses and won the Mid-City Freestyle Tournament held at Jesuit High School beating Jesuit's Jeff Vitenas in the finals. Ben has continued to hone his skills this summer and will be a terror on the mat next season. We are still deciding if Ben will participate in more National Events this year or if preparation for the upcoming season is more important. Earlier this summer Ben qualified for the Nationals by winning both the Freestyle and Greco titles at the Southeast Regionals.
Marshall Leavoy had to cut his tournament short after posting two impressive victories. The prom called him away. The tournament started close to 3 hours late. You cannot expect a guy to wait all day and leave his girl in the car. Marshall also wrestled in the Southeast Regionals and had an impressive showing.
What a weekend Michael Podnar had. Michael posted a couple of victories and made his first finals match. He came up a bit short, but wrestled valiantly. This kid is going to be one to watch this next season. His upper body strength continues to improve and his shoulders are now staying where they are supposed to. Congratulations "Flipper".
Last, but certainly not least, Zach Braud. What did this guy do? He only won the tournament with victories over the Brother Martin kid and others. What an accomplishment. Two weeks of practice in a new style of wrestling and our guys hold their own. Zach I expect big things from you next season. You can play football, but we all know your true love is wrestling.
I am proud of these guys and hope that all of you will come be oart of the summer program. Weight-lifting is being scheduled and we will have open mat several times a week. Camps are just around the corner and many are posted on the schedule. I am also working on next seasons schedule and posting those events as they are scheduled. Please let me know if I can help any of your kids accomplish any of their goals this summer.
Seasons
Sponsors
